# Four FUCKING hours **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 30, 2004, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805 "2004-05-30T16:39:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/1 "2004-05-30T16:39:02Z")
So I decided it was time to quit smoking. I saw my Doctor (actually his PA) a couple of weeks ago for an unrelated issue. Of course while there, she suggested I need to quit smoking. I said that I would really like to quit. What do you have that could help me with this endeavor. She suggested Zyban. Last Sunday I started taking this stuff with a projected quit day of today. I woke up 4 hours ago. I think this Zyban shit is fucking worthless. I think it’s a big ol’ psychological head game to make you think it should be easier, and to make you think to yourself “I’ve been taking this shit for a week. I don’t want to blow it now”. Well, I don’t think it’s doing a lick of good. But I’m going to try and tough it out. After all, I’ve made it through 4 hours, and I \* have \* been taking this shit for a week. 😃 (as an aside…has anyone ever tried Zyban to quit, & did it work?) ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/2 "2004-05-30T16:44:30Z")
Oh you’re at the easy part now. Wait until tomorrow, that’s when the fun starts. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/3 "2004-05-30T16:50:42Z")
Well, isn’t this a small world. Go see my thread in the Pit here if you like, about Wellbutrin (which is Zyban under a different name - both are bupropion). I’ve just started taking Celexa for my anxiety, and I’m pretty much counting the hours until it starts working, too. After this last bout with anxiety, I have a whole new respect for people who _do_ quit smoking. For what it’s worth, you might look into some anxiety self-help books to help with quitting - they’re full of suggestions for taking your mind off things, relaxation exercises, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/4 "2004-05-30T16:55:59Z")
Funny you should mention that \*\* featherlou \*\*. Just after I posted my thread, I saw your thread. After reading through it I thought “Oh Great! It doesn’t seem to be helping much at all and now it will turn me into a basket case too.” 4.5 hours ---
**Author:** ![GLWasteful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f05b48/32.png) [@GLWasteful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GLWasteful)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/5 "2004-05-30T17:03:45Z")
Took it and quit in a remarkably short time. And said at the time that it was kinda creepy how easy it was to quit while taking the stuff. Didn’t eliminate all cravings, but made them a hell of a lot less strong. And I had come to the conclusion that I might be a lifetime smoker as recently as a few months before I decided to try the meds. Dunno what the difference is, but you **did** say that you wanted to quit, and I have come to believe that simple desire to stop is half the battle. YMODV. Waste ---
**Author:** ![fluiddruid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/6 "2004-05-30T18:40:11Z")
Congratulations to you. A few tips from a friend of mine who went from a very heavy smoker to a non-smoker using Zyban: Try to keep busy, above all else. Find something to occupy 100% of your time during the first few days. Focus your mind elsewhere, especially on something physical (like exercising, cleaning, etc. rather than reading a book). Don’t put yourself in positions where you’ll be tempted. Stay away from other smokers or places where you can buy cigarettes. Hang around with friends who will encourage you. You’ll be miserable, but at least you’ll be busy. Please hang in there! You’re doing a great thing. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/7 "2004-05-30T20:09:04Z")
Can you take Zyban with Nicotine gum? If so, that would help a lot. Carrot sticks and mint gum seem to also help. Also, change your routine a bit. If you always have a cig with your morning coffee, then switch to something else with caffiene for that breakfast- then get yourself an expresso as a well deserved treat later. Good luck! 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/8 "2004-05-30T20:41:15Z")
Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/9 "2004-05-30T20:52:08Z")
I used Zyban to quit. Can’t compare it to quitting without drugs, because it was the one and only time I quit. What I found about it was that it didn’t cut down on the cravings at all I mean _damn_ but I wanted a smoke. What it did do though was help me manage my reaction to those cravings. Kept me sane enough to realize that no actually I wasn’t going to physically die, it just felt like it. Good luck. ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/10 "2004-05-30T20:54:51Z")
It worked wonders for one of my aunts - she’d been trying to kick her two-packets-a-day routine for years, and always failed within weeks. She’s now not smoked for some three years. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Tiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Mama\_Tiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Tiger)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/11 "2004-05-30T22:26:22Z")
They didn’t have Zyban back when I quit my too-many-cigs-a-day habit; I had to do it basically cold turkey (cut down from 3-ish packs a day to 1.5 or so, then just toughed it out for a week or so). It’s the first few days that are hardest. Accept the fact that you’ll be certifiable for 3-4 days, but also realize that cravings don’t last forever, they peak and fade away again within half an hour or so. So if you can make it through that 15-30 minutes, you’re probably good for a while again. Like **DrDeth** said, change your routine. Avoid situations where you used to have a cig out of habit. And don’t have any around to prevent exactly the situation that happened to a friend of mine, who picked one up from someone else’s pack lying on the table and had it lit and half smoked before she even realized what she’d done. Stay physically busy. Get lots of exercise. It will also help your lungs clear out some of that gunk. It’ll take them a while, but no time like the present to start. I haven’t had a cigarette now in quite a few years, and can safely say that after the first couple of months I have _never_ missed them. Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![cmason32](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@cmason32](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmason32)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/12 "2004-05-30T23:48:03Z")
I quit cold turkey over 5 years ago. The one thing I remember about it was having dreams that I was smoking and being so mad at myself in my dream. I think it was my body’s way of telling me not to start again. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/13 "2004-05-31T00:08:27Z")
I don’t know your financial situation, or if monetary rewards inspire you, but my brother finally managed to quit by putting the cost of a pack of cigarettes every day (his usual rate of smoking) into a clear glass jar, and then that money was used for ‘toys’ he might not otherwise have justified buying. “Trading” pleasures, like a couple days worth of smokes for a new DVD, was a lot more encouraging to him than just seeing it as denying himself a pleasure in return for the kind-of-nebulous idea of better health in the long run. ---
**Author:** ![edwino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@edwino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwino)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/14 "2004-05-31T00:34:42Z")
The evidence based medicine on Zyban, IIRC, is pretty shaky. I mean, it works great for some people, but for others it works like holes in socks. The parameter that they calculate, number needed to treat (NNT), is something like 9; for every 9 people you give Zyban to, 1 of them will quit. That said, it is certainly worth a course because quitting smoking is a bitch and if it helps then it is a wonderful thing. Good luck with everything, though. ---
**Author:** ![jellyblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e480ec/32.png) [@jellyblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jellyblue)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/15 "2004-05-31T00:37:54Z")
If you really feel like you’re going to blow it, why not slap a patch on, too? I quit after 19 years (first try) on something like Zyban and a patch I kept making incrementally smaller. I wore a sliver everyday for a month, LOL, but it worked. I haven’t smoked in over 2 years. I had thought I’d smoke forever. Are you sure a week was long enough for it to take effect before you tried to quit? Antidepressants can take 2 - 4 weeks to work… Good luck! ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/16 "2004-05-31T00:43:32Z")
Well, I made it to 12 hours & my children are still alive to boot. 😉 I still don’t think the Zyban is doing much good. I’ve tried quitting before and this doesn’t seem any easier. I’ll keep with it though, maybe I’m wrong and it is easier this time & I’ve forgotten how hard it was before. Thanks for the words of encouragement all. Posting this here has given me just that little bit of extra incentive. Having all these people know I’m trying to quit, I don’t want to let them all down. I guess I really shouldn’t have put this in the pit, but I wanted to do a little swearing and ranting at the Zyban. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/17 "2004-05-31T02:48:04Z")
I didn’t mean to scare you, **Fugazi**. I don’t know for sure that my anxiety was from the anti-depressant; I’ve had an anxiety disorder for 14 years, and huge stress for the last year, so if anyone’s going to get anxious, it would be me. And anti-depressants do take a couple weeks to start working; don’t give up, man. When you’re through with your cravings, you’ll be an ex-smoker. I’m taking it one day at a time, too. ---
**Author:** ![Mariemarie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/58f4c7/32.png) [@Mariemarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mariemarie)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/18 "2004-05-31T03:25:40Z")
If you’re ever having misgivings about the effects of your medication, please do call your doctor right away and describe what you’re going through. It may give him or her insight into which meds will or will not help you, and your doctor might prescribe a change. Your symptoms could simply be common to those quitting smoking. Then again, maybe not . So call. Don’t worry about making a pest of yourself. That’s what the doctor is there for. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/19 "2004-05-31T04:11:34Z")
My cousin had been a smoker for over 25 years when she started taking Zyban. She quit taking it after 2 weeks, and hasn’t smoked since. That was at least two funerals, a graduation and a wedding ago (probably three years in human time) I hope it works as well for you. ---
**Author:** ![LouisB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dfb087/32.png) [@LouisB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LouisB)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2004, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805/20 "2004-05-31T12:22:59Z")
No matter how you stop smoking, do it. You will never regret it and think of the money you’ll be able to spend buying your children nice things. Best of luck to you. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/four-fucking-hours/247805.md?page=2)